Freedom for some, death for others

By now, you will have been aware of the mass shooting in a club in Florida, USA. Not for the first time on this blog, I find myself writing about the crazy gun laws in America. Despite being on a government watch list, the murderer was able to legally acquire handguns and assault rifles. And this in a country that is no stranger to mass killings with similar weapons.

Because of his ethnic background, there was initially some speculation that religion might have been a motive. However, his family are sure that it was simply that he was homophobic, and disturbed by open displays of affection by gay men. Everyone seems to be asking the wrong question. It is immaterial what his motives were, what matters is how he was able to obtain the weapons used to carry out the killing.

Americans hold dear to their right to bear arms. They quote their constitution, and in some states, accumulate hundreds of weapons in otherwise perfectly ordinary households. They teach tiny children to shoot, and often carry weapons openly; worn in their belts, or attached to racks in pick-up trucks. They have a gun culture, deep within the soul of their nation. And they pay the price for it. Not only numerous mass killings, but armed gangsters, an inordinate amount of police officers shot dead in the line of duty, as well as countless bystanders caught in the regular crossfire.

Many US citizens claim their right to own firearms as a ‘freedom’.
What about the freedom of all those killed? That doesn’t matter, it seems.

Like this:

Related

17 comments

I hear ya for sure … My grandfather use to say he was glad he no longer was in the force, due to the gun violence… His time spent on the force was during the depression era and sure had changed since then.. too many are just following ~ walking blindly where others have gone, instead being proud to stand for what is really right and just… Great post my friend across the pond… Grandpa would be proud of his fellow retired officer across the pond.. I feel he wanted me to tell you that..

No.. I didn’t actually hear him say it, but I knew him well and what he would say to you my friend…

Take care, Laura ( My internet is acting up so I hope my reply goes through just once, instead of multiple times… )

Thanks, Laura. I am sure that your grandfather would be pleased to have served when he did, and not these days, with his hands tied behind his back by legal shenanigans, and the perpetrators portrayed as victims.

(I should clarify that although I worked for the police in London from 2001-2012, I was a Civilian Communications Officer, not a serving policeman. Before that, I was in the Ambulance Service, from 1979-2001, as an EMT.)
Best wishes, Pete.

The US 2nd Amendment reads in part: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State . . .” No one seems to read that part. No on reads the reason for a central government not having the power to do away with an armed citizenry. At the point this was ratified, we had recently won our independence from an oppressive, distant central government (England) largely because most Americans had guns. Today, people in the gun rights and gun restriction groups only focus on the rest of the 2nd Amendment. Even the courts seem to have missed those 13 words which constitute the reason for people in the 18th Century “needed” to have muskets.

Pete, sensible as always. I think it is far too late for the USA to ever turn this around. The sheer number of weapons sold in any given year in the US would seem mind boggling to people in the UK. And yes, unlike an lgbt nightclub, I doubt anyone would be mad enough to attack people attending a rodeo… Which sadly rather proves the wrong point of view. Cheers Keith xxx 😉

Indeed. The fact that the heavily-armed groups never get attacked (and are often left alone by the FBI and ATF agents) does tend to give credence to their claims. No change in our lifetimes, I suspect.
Cheers mate, Pete. (Love to Olga. X)

I suppose it’s because the killers never take on gangs of Hell’s Angels, Good Old Boys, or Rednecks. They choose softer targets, like schoolkids, or a club full of (presumably) unarmed gay men. If Obama wasn’t determined enough to take on the gun lobby, I doubt Clinton will do it. As for Trump, if he wins, he will probably give everyone a free gun!
Cheers mate, Pete.

It will take generations to change the gun culture in America, but as you say it has to start with a change in the law. What gets me is that many from the gun lobby claim that they need to be able to defend themselves and yet this very rarely happens when incidents like this occur. It is invariably the police who end the violence, not some gun toting citizen in the fray.

Pete, it’s way past high time and way past too many deaths for the laws not to have been changed. I am originally from the USA, but moved away in the 1970s. This obsession with guns confounds me, and I from Nebraska!